Thought #1: I'm a girl who likes comics, and I haven't read anything on the list. Not really interested. Then again I've never claimed to have good taste in comics, just my own taste in comics, and I'm already predisposed to like superhero books (none of those are on the list, by the way, because "girls" don't like capes and spandex), so I'm sure I'm not the target audience. (Besides, if you're really trying to find a comic that non-comic-readers will appreciate, pick up Maus--that's the gold standard there.)
Thought #2: Why was the article written? Isn't it really a well-meaning albeit potentially misinformed effort? Well, this is the stated goal, verbatim:
For a male comic-book fan, there's nothing more aggravating than dating a girl who can't respect comics. While there are plenty of women who read comics, more often than not, guys end up dating gals not interested in their "hobby." You don't want to give up one love (beautiful comic books) for another (who gives you sex). Instead of choosing (or being emasculated each Wednesday), you can try and get your girlfriend into comics.
A couple of things come to mind about this.
First is that if your partner is "emasculating" you (by which I assume the author means being critical or belittling) every time you come home with a stack of comics, it's probably time to look for a new partner because that's unacceptable. (Unless you make a point of ragging on her as well when she gets out her crossword puzzles or woodworking equipment or whatever her obsession is, in which case the two of you have a pretty weird dynamic going there, but whatever.)
Second is that your partner doesn't have to share your passions to respect them. You can only like people who are just like you? That's a problem, isn't it?
Thought #3: The "well-meaning" aspect of this thing. Why, again, does the author believe that his reader wants his girlfriend to get into comics? Is it because this is something he loves that he wants to share with his partner and connect with her in that way? Is it because he really, truly thinks that she will enjoy comics if she's willing to give them a chance, and he hopes to bring her pleasure in that way? Well, no. Look at the quote--it's because (a) he wants her to quit complaining about his hobby (which she shouldn't be doing anyway, damn it) and (b) he wants to have something to talk about with her that he is interested in, the implication being that her own interests are less worthy. And if he can get her interested in comics, he won't have to hear her drone on about Hemingway or Dixieland jazz or Art Deco architecture anymore. Never mind that respect goes both ways...
You know, my husband is comic-friendly but he's not a fan. He'll read them if they're in the house, and sometimes he'll ask whether the comics have arrived yet (we get them near the end of each month), but there's nothing in particular he asks me to order, and I really don't know whether he reads the whole stack, although I suspect not. I know he looks forward to Young Avengers and is disappointed when there's none in the stack (which has been the case lately more often than not :P) Sometimes he'll offer an opinion--he liked the story in the recent Spider-Woman mini-series but didn't care for the art (I didn't like either very much), but for the most part he just picks them up if he feels like it, doesn't if he doesn't, occasionally asks a question. I've never made a point of "getting" him to read them--we have plenty of interests that we already share to talk about, plenty of things we have in common. We just don't have to have everything in common. I wouldn't want him to twist my arm into taking up any of his hobbies, why would I find it appropriate to "get him into" mine. He's already taken as much of an interest in comics as he's going to, just because they're around--what would be the point of pressing the issue?
And yes, that's pretty much the way I approach it with my kids, despite the tongue-in-cheek blurb at the top of this blog--the eleven-year-old does make definite requests, the seven-year-old doesn't (but it would be a sad day if no Scooby-Doo was in the stack!), and when they arrive I give them to them and they read them (if and) when they read them. I'm pleased that they enjoy them, but if they decide they don't want to get them at some point, that's also all right.
No comments:
Post a Comment